Improving learning by playing with an app: The FantaTraining ^® experience with anesthesia trainees

Area of Science:

• Medical Education
• Anesthesiology
• Obstetric Anesthesia

Background:

• FantaTraining® is a gamified mobile application simulating a football league, incorporating educational content for practice between game intervals.
• The app aims to enhance learning through interactive questionnaires and access to diverse educational materials (films, texts, slides).
• Prizes are offered to incentivize participation and achievement within the simulated league structure.

Purpose of the Study:

• To evaluate the impact of the FantaTraining® app on the learning of anesthesia trainees enrolled in an online obstetric anesthesia course.
• To determine if gamified learning through the app improves knowledge acquisition and retention compared to traditional online learning methods.

Main Methods:

• A study involving 282 anesthesia trainees from five Italian universities registered in an Online Obstetric Anesthesia Course (OOAC).
• Participants were randomly assigned to a study group (app enabled, n=137) or a control group (app disabled, n=145).
• Both groups completed identical 40-item multiple-choice pre- and post-course tests to assess knowledge gain.

Main Results:

• No significant differences in pre-course test scores were observed between the study and control groups.
• Both groups showed significant improvement in post-course test scores compared to pre-course scores (P<0.05).
• The study group using the FantaTraining® app demonstrated significantly higher final test scores than the control group (P<0.001).

Conclusions:

• The FantaTraining® app significantly enhanced the final examination performance of anesthesia trainees in an online obstetric anesthesia course.
• The app appears to be a promising tool for improving educational outcomes by fostering better learning behaviors and attitudes.
• Trainees reported increased understanding and motivation, with no perceived increase in study effort.